Race details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Dates | 17 May - 6 June 1979 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Stages | 19 + Prologue | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Distance | 3,301 km (2,051 mi) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Winning time | 89h 29' 18" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Results | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 1979 Giro d'Italia was the 62nd running of the Giro, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It started in Florence, on 17 May, with an 8 km (5.0 mi) prologue and concluded in Milan, on 6 June, with a 44 km (27.3 mi) individual time trial. A total of 130 riders from thirteen teams entered the 19-stage race, that was won by Italian Giuseppe Saronni of the Scic-Bottecchia team. The second and third places were taken by Italian Francesco Moser and Swede Bernt Johansson, respectively.[1][2]
In addition to the general classification, Saronni won the points classification, Amongst the other classifications that the race awarded, Claudio Bortolotto of Sanson Gelati-Luxor TV won the mountains classification, and Bianchi-Faema's Silvano Contini completed the Giro as the best rider aged 24 or under in the general classification, finishing fifth overall. Sanson Gelati-Luxor TV finishing as the winners of the team classification, ranking each of the twenty teams contesting the race by lowest cumulative time.